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"The lesson will be taught in due time, Aloy. Until then, we wait." This article contains heavy spoilers. Read ahead with caution.
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Ritakka, formerly known as Nessa, is a character in the Horizon Zero Dawn comic series and Horizon Forbidden West, and a datapoint-only character in Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores.
History[]
Life Among the Carja[]
Horizon Zero Dawn: Volume 1: The Sunhawk[]
Nessa disguised as a man.
At the beginning of the Red Raids, since women were not allowed to serve in the Carja military, Nessa disguised herself as a man so that she could join. She was sent to the Forbidden West, where she was ordered to participate in brutal raids against the Utaru. Although Nessa was disturbed by the nature of her duties, she maintained an outward facade of indifference, recognizing that her gender was likely to be discovered and punished if she displayed weakness.
During one raid, Nessa discovered Amadis Beit Raveesh, a young and newly-deployed officer in the Carja army, attempting to aid an injured Utaru victim. Nessa confronted him, in an attempt to warn him of the dangers of showing sympathy to their enemies, but Amadis interpreted this as a threat and tackled Nessa to the ground, knocking her helmet loose. Amadis hesitated upon realizing she was a woman, allowing Nessa to quickly don her helmet again and leave. As she walked away, Nessa cautioned Amadis not to show compassion again in front of other soldiers.
Nessa and Amadis meeting in secret.
From this point on, Nessa and Amadis developed a relationship based on their mutual secrets, working together to sabotage Carja raids they were involved in and protect their intended victims.
Nessa's unit was eventually deployed into combat against a force of Tenakth warriors, on the orders of General Gediah Kho Veriv. Although Amadis had intelligence suggesting the Carja forces would be greatly outmatched, he was unable to avert the attack or warn Nessa in time. She was captured in the ensuing battle and brought to the Clan Lands for execution, and Amadis believed her to be dead. Left with feelings of profound guilt, he kept a salvaged portion of her helmet as a keepsake, wearing it as a pendant in memory of her.
In a stroke of luck, Nessa was found by the Marshal Fashav, a fellow Carja who escaped death by earning his way into the Tenakth. Seeing a kindred spirit in her, Fashav spared Nessa from execution and allowed her to earn her survival. Upon doing so, Nessa was accepted into the Tenakth's Lowland Clan, coming to embrace the Tenakth as her people, fully renouncing her Carja identity and adopting the name "Ritakka".[2]
Life Among the Tenakth[]
- "The Carja Nessa was here. I killed her myself."
- ―Ritakka[1]
At some point, Ritakka became a squad leader and her squad was sent on a scouting mission to the Burning Shores by Commander Atekka, which Ritakka thought might've been an exile or death sentence in disguise. However, Fashav told her that the mission order came from Chief Hekarro himself, wanting to know if the land could be claimed to expand the Clan Lands. However, once they arrived, Ritakka quickly noted that the enormous force needed to fortify the ruins against the machines would be more than Hekarro would be willing to spare. After documenting their findings, Ritakka and her squad returned to the Clan Lands.[3]
Ritakka and her squad were later sent to retake the Rot after it had been seized by Regalla's rebels, but they failed and were imprisoned in the Rot.[2]
Horizon Forbidden West[]
Amadis came to the Forbidden West in hopes of finding her fate, eventually uncovering the fate of the woman once known as Nessa as he, Aloy and Talanah saved her and her squad. Ritakka, no longer the woman Amadis had loved, refused to reconnect with Amadis, only granting him safe passage as "Nessa's final farewell".[1]
After Regalla was defeated during her final attack on the Memorial Grove, Ritakka thanked Aloy, knowing that Regalla would've killed her for her Carja history had she succeeded.[4]
Associated Quests[]
Horizon Forbidden West[]
- The Burning Blooms (mentioned only)
- Need to Know
- The Wings of the Ten (post-quest conversation; only if Need to Know has been completed)
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Need to Know
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 As mentioned by Ritakka during Need to Know.
- ↑ Primary Expedition Log
- ↑ After completing The Wings of the Ten.